HVAC Technical Academy Graduation | Guest Speaker Katie from Honeywell Home

That’s always a good thing. Hi, Chloe. And one of the things that we do is, like I said, we challenge you. You’re going to see up here not only all the different things that everybody has done from zero knowledge to a vast array of experience and knowledge. It’s phenomenal. You’ll see all the things that we do, and you’re going to also see some Lobos fans. So when you see up there, let’s go Lobos. We’re going to win tomorrow night, and I hope so.

So my name is Danny, and it’s a pleasure. It’s a pleasure to be here. It’s a pleasure to be a mentor in the path of where so many people are going. And each person is going to come up here and say a couple of words in a few moments.

So with that said, a little bit about what we do. We work hard, as you all know. The value of that is you’re building character. You’re building hands-on experience. You’re building a lot of value. And you do have a lot of value.

From day one, I saw so many people, 10 people, individual islands separately like this. After a couple of days, became familiar with each other, and now it’s a relationship. And it’s something that I’m hoping that I encourage everyone to do, that you continue.

We’re here at all times. Andrew is here. Robert as well. Chris, call us. You have our numbers. You have my mobile number, you have Andrew, you have Robert. When you get ready to go to an interview, if you’re on the job and you have a question and nobody can help you, call us.

Don’t call me because I won’t be able to help you. You know, I’m not a technician, but I’ll be able to direct you to Andrew or Robert. That’s why we’re here. We’re here to develop our relationship with you.

We’ve seen a lot of growth, a lot of pain, a lot of struggles, and a lot of boos, as I’m sure you’ll see up there.

What we’re going to do is, first of all, I would like to ask a young lady to come up here. I should be using this. Oops. Is this better? Did I typically sing? But anyway, I do want to introduce a young lady by the name of Katie. She’s part of our program, and she’ll tell you a little bit about what she does, why she does it, and the wonderful things that they do.

Katie:

Hi, I’m Katie. Can you hear me? Okay, I’m kind of loud, so I’m like shying away. I’m Katie. I work for a division of Honeywell Home. So, all of those thermostats that a lot of you guys have learned to install, those are mine. Not making you biased, but I do support you guys, so maybe, you know, support me. I’m joking.

But I do work for a division of Honeywell, and I’m in the area a lot, so you’ll probably see me. My stepdad and I are both in the HVAC industry. My stepdad is one of the general managers for one of the local businesses, and we like to come and just kind of talk to everybody about just everything HVAC, what we do on our side and what it looks like from our point of view as we see technicians.

So that’s just kind of a little bit about what I do when I come here. But a lot of it is really just us trying to support you guys as you go through this journey. And you’re here now. So, congrats, which is great.

But yeah, so super proud of you guys. Congratulations. You made it. And be proud of yourself because that is not an easy thing. I don’t know how to install the things that you guys do. I just sell it. So, be very proud.

Danny:

Thank you.

We got introduced to ARS and Resideo last term. We had a young gentleman by the name of Chimearis. He applied with ARS, just fresh, all that good stuff. He applied, went to the interview. I believe he was pretty much hired on the spot, and he’s doing, according to Katie, and I know that Chimearis will, he’s doing extremely well.

So this is not an uncommon event for people who put themselves out there. We’ve talked about Mrs. Smith a lot. There’s a reason for it. And it’s about attitude. It’s about courtesy. It’s about developing that part of life. Do as I say and you will be successful.

I know that yesterday y’all had a very stressful day with the EPA exam. So we’re going to know in about a week probably how we all did.

One of the persons who also is deeply involved with this is Andrew. Unfortunately, Andrew is sick. He has not been feeling well, and he’s not going to be able to talk. So I’ll just pretend like I’m him. No, I won’t do that.

But I do want to introduce Robert. Robert is one of the primary instructors. Andrew is one of the primary instructors, part of Tropical Air of Central Florida. Robert comes from Oregon, been in the business for many years, and his experience and his knowledge are extremely valuable. So come on up here, Robert, and please give me a few.

Robert:

Well, you made it six weeks. You put up with me. You put up with Andrew. You put up with Chris, too. Now, we can’t forget Chris, right? Okay.

And so, right, so you did it. Okay. You did your EPA, you got through that. If you didn’t pass, you know, you got more chances. Okay. So it’s not like it’s the end. So don’t think it’s the end. It’s just the beginning of what you guys have ahead of you guys.

And that’s all it is. It’s just nothing but a bright future and whatever you want to make of it. So make the best of it.

You know, family and friends, thanks for coming. Appreciate the support and everything else for the kids. And, you know, it’s really neat to see. Like I say, it’s just kind of special.

So thanks a lot, and congratulations. It’s a future. It really is. And it’s all on what you want to make of it. So make the best, please. It’s all I hope for y’all. Make the best.

Danny:

Okay. Oddly enough, a couple of semesters, a couple of terms ago, one of the gentlemen who used to come here, he is working, he presented lunch to everybody, which was a very nice thing. And oddly enough, it was also on my birthday, which was a complete—my birthday wasn’t a complete surprise, but the lunch and this was.

So I typically don’t allow such things, but it was a nice thing. That’s what I mean. It’s about building relationships.

And I want to thank you because every time we have individuals come through here, I get to grow, Elaine gets to grow, Robert, we all learn from the challenges that we have to put through because some knuckleheads in here. And I’m not going to mention any names, Alex, so you’re safe.

Yeah. So that’s what we do here. Individuals who come here typically know zero. By the time that they leave, they know a great deal. They’re valuable. They’re marketable, and they can and will get a job, a career. Not just a job, but a career. And that’s something to be very proud of.

It is a life-changing thing. And I know that from the experience that I’ve seen, many people have changed.

So one of the things that we do up here is we show ourselves, we show the value that we have through a video.

Unfortunately, four people decided, chose not to do their video, and that’s disappointing. You can’t give me an excuse because how many times did I say let’s do it?

So by not being active, not taking opportunities, I get a little disappointed because it’s something that you should be proud of. It’s something that when you go to a job interview and you’re looked up, because people do look people up, and there’s a video of you talking about your professionalism and talking about HVAC, that is a value.

So of all the years that we’ve been here, I’ve never had that happen. So I am disappointed. I’m not going to mention any names, but you’ll know.

So one of the things that we do, like I say, is videos. And I would like to show the very first video, the first person who is going to—we’re going to watch. And then I will ask this person to come up as all of y’all individually say a couple of words, accept your certificate, and then know that in about another week you should be getting your EPA and then shortly after that your OSHA certification.

So there’s a lot of really cool things that we’re doing. So let me try to find this for you.